Product data management system

ABSTRACT

A permanently read- and write-enabled but not easily erasable chip card (C) accompanies a product from manufacturing through recycling. The basic product data are supplemented using read-write devices (SL 1  through SL 8 ).

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a device for product data management during thelifetime of a product.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

If a product requires accompanying documentation during its lifetime,the relevant data must be stored during pre-manufacturing,manufacturing, assembly, material preparation and servicing up to andincluding the recycling process. It has been customary to record theproduct lifetime data on accompanying papers and test reports on siteand archive them at a central or decentralized location. One archivingmethod used is microfilming. Accessing this data, however, is difficultif not impossible.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to keep production and productdata available on an electronic product pass during manufacturing,assembly, servicing, and recycling, in compliance with the requirementsof the quality systems. Compatibility with quality systems such as ISO9000 must be ensured.

This object is achieved according to the present invention with a deviceby assigning the product a chip card-like electronic data medium that ispermanently write- and read-enabled but not easily erased, also havingboth basic product data and the respective optically readable plain textID, where the basic product data can be supplemented with additionaldata associated with product lifetime events, such as manufacturing,final testing, rework, shipping, user operation, service andmaintenance, disassembly and recycling, using electronic read-writedevices.

Thus product quality and configuration are documented during thelifetime of the product in a very simple manner and can be tracked atany time.

The present invention provides the user with particular advantages, suchas:

reduced-paper or paperless documentation and manufacturing control;

guaranteed product quality trackability during manufacturing, assembly,service, and recycling;

documentation of test results, rework and maintenance work in thedifferent phases of the product's lifetime;

ensuring product serviceability and maintainability by documentingmodified components (component variants, retrofitting, etc.) or thecharge codes used;

documentation of test results and defective parts for rework control;

evidence in the case of product liability issues;

facilitating maintenance work through individual product documentationof the component variants used;

facilitating the recycling process through documentation of theavailable spare parts and materials used.

The first exemplary embodiment of the present invention is characterizedin that, thanks to special encryption, the read-write devices assignedto lifetime segments only have access to the basic product data andspecifically definable subsets of additional data. This ensures securityagainst unauthorized access to the data.

Another exemplary embodiment of the present invention is characterizedin that the data of the data medium can be archived in mass storagedevices at predefinable points of the product's lifetime, and, for thesubsequent life cycle segments, the original data medium can be replacedby a new, similar data medium, which can receive an additional subset ofthe basic product data and the previous additional data that is stillsignificant for the remaining life of the product. Thus it can beensured that no data that is irrelevant to the user of a product isstored on the chip card given to said user. Thus not only is theunnecessary use of data storage space avoided, but also confidentialmanufacturing data that is irrelevant to the user of the product isfully eliminated.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWING

FIG. 1 shows a front view of a chip card.

FIG. 2 shows a rear view of a chip card.

FIG. 3 shows a structure schematic according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 shows the front view of a data medium, in this case a chip card Chaving a high storage capacity. The storage capacity may vary between 8and 64 MB. Such a chip card C is permanently read- and write-enabled oncontact surfaces indicated in the figure as ovals, using read-writedevices to be described later. The read-write procedures can, of course,take place via encryption. Of course, contact surfaces such as thoseused in commercially available telephone cards can also be used here inprinciple.

Furthermore, chip card C can contain plain text information on basicproduct data. In FIG. 1, this information is the following:

Service card for product xyz

for product—ID

Manufacturing data

Configuration

Service data

Theft protection

Encryption

Valuable material pass for recycling

xyz can denote a motor vehicle type, for example; product ID can be amotor vehicle chassis number. Additional graphic elements, for example,company logos and the like, can be printed on chip card C.

FIG. 2 shows the rear side of the above-described chip card C. Also herean imprint can be provided. In the embodiment shown, this imprint maylook like the following:

Service card

for product—ID

Quality pass

Signature

Manufacturing Plant abc

Date May 01, 1995

abc may represent the name of the manufacturing plant, e.g., therespective automobile factory, in plain text.

FIG. 3 shows the interaction of read-write devices SL1 through SL8 withchip cards. Initially the chip card is provided with a factory-specificimprint in block I; then basic product data, in particular, job data,are recorded on the chip card using a read-write device not shown forthe sake of clarity. Subsequently the chip card is placed in a caseaccompanying the vehicle and goes first to manufacturing/assembly withthe product. There the previous data is supplemented by a read-writedevice SL1 with the manufacturing/assembly-specific data. This data mayinclude: customer, product, configuration, delivery, manufacturingsequence, planned start time, and ID information. Frommanufacturing/assembly, the product goes to final testing, where theadditional data associated with final testing is electronically recordedon the chip card using read-write device SL2. This data may include: QAdata, test results, parts and/or semifinished products that were used ormissing or modified, actual date, and manufacturing sequence.

The flow chart, which shows both the hardware arrangement and therespective process sequence, contains the information that the productmay require rework. For this purpose, the following data is supplementedin a read-write device SL3 in a two-step process: QA data, test results,rework sequence planned, rework specifications, and as the case may be,product reclassification. In a read-write device SL4, which is alsoassigned to the rework step, the following additional data can berecorded: QA data, test results, rework sequence actual, reworkdocumentation.

The product is now completely finished and ready for shipment. Thedashed line indicates that the product, with its respective chip card,now goes to shipping, where it receives the following information in aread-write device SL5: shipping route, dealer data, service data, actualshipping date, recycling data. In the subsequent life cycle segment,operation at user, service-relevant data can be entered via a read-writedevice SL6.

During the Service and Maintenance life cycle segment, the followingdata can be recorded on the chip card using a read-write device SL7:service data, test results, parts modified in service, planned/actualservice dates.

It is also essential for modern product follow-up to consider thedisassembly/recycling life cycle segment, where additional informationcan be recorded on the chip card by read-write device SL8: recyclingdata, disassembly sequence, parts usage. When the product has reachedthe end of its life cycle, the chip card data can be documented, in ablock IV, using a read-write device that is not shown for the sake ofclarity, on a CD-ROM, for example, and this data can be archived. Eachread-write device SL1 through SL8 can receive a cryptographic key, sothat only one sub-area of the information stored on the chip card can bewritten and/or read.

Much information is produced during product manufacture that isirrelevant for the subsequent product life cycle and is only to bedocumented at the manufacturer. For this situation, the original chipcard is separated from the actual product in a block II, and theoriginal information is archived at the manufacturer, for example, on aCD-ROM, and a new chip card, similar to the first chip card, containingonly the additional data that is relevant for the subsequent life cycleof the product, is produced in a block III. This additional chip cardthen accompanies the product to the end of its life cycle.

The chip card can also be used for purposes of identification like a carkey, or as a vehicle registration card.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system, comprising: a first chip card datastorage medium, the first chip card being read-enabled, write-enabled,and non-volatile, and containing a basic product data set and acorresponding optically readable plain text identification, the firstchip card being assigned to the product, wherein the basic product datacan be supplemented with additional data corresponding to the product'slife cycle events, wherein before shipping of the product, the firstchip card is separated from the product, data of the first chip cardbeing archived to a mass storage device; a second chip card data storagemedium assigned to the product and replacing the first chip card for asubsequent life cycle of the product, the second chip card beingread-enabled, write-enabled, and non-volatile, the second chip cardcontaining a subset of the basic product data set and a subset of theadditional data set that is relevant for the user of the product,; andat least one electronic read/write device for writing data to andreading data from the first chip card and the second chip card.
 2. Thesystem according to claim 1, wherein the product's life cycle eventsinclude manufacturing, final testing, rework, shipping, user operation,service and maintenance, disassembly, and recycling.
 3. The systemaccording to claim 1, wherein the at least one electronic read-writedevice has access to the basic product data set and the additional data.